Sol. Pardon could not be an act of pure grace, if God received satisfaction from us ; but if he pardon us upon the satisfaction re- ceived from Christ, though it be of debt to him, it is of grace to us : for it was grace to admit a Surety to satisfy, more grace to provide him, and most of all to apply his satisfaction to us, by uniting us to Christ, as he hath done.
Object. But God loved us before Christ died for us ; for it was the love qf God to the world that moved him to give his only-begot- ten Son. Could God love us, and yet not be reconciled and satisfied ?
Sol. God's complacent love is indeed inconsistent with an unre- conciled state : He is reconciled to every one he so loves. But his benevolent love, consisting in his purpose of good, may be before actual reconciliation and satisfaction.
Object. Temporal death, as well as eternal, is a part of the curse, if Christ have fully satisfied by bearing the curse for us, how is it, that those for whom he bare it, die as well as others f
Sol. As temporal death is a penal evil, and part of the curse, so God inflicts it not upon believers ; but they must die for other ends, viz. to be made perfectly happy in a more full and immediate enjoyment of God, than they can have in the body : and so, death is theirs by way of privilege, 1 Cor. hi. 22. They are not deatKs by way of punishment. The same may be said of all the afflictions with which God, for gracious ends, now exercises his reconciled ones. Thus much may suffice to establish this great truth.
Inference 1, If the death of Christ was that which satisfied God for all the sins of the elect, then certainly there is an infinite evil in, sin. since it cannot be expiated but by an infinite satisfaction. Fools make a mock at sin, and there are but few souls in the world that pre duly sensible of, and affected with its evil ; but certainly, if God
SERM. XIV. THE FOUNTAIN OF LIFE. 185
should damn thee to all eternity, thy eternal sufferings could not satisfy for the evil that is in one vain thought. * It may be you may think this is harsh and severe, that God should hold his crea- tures under everlasting sufferings for sin, and never be satisfied with them any more. But when you have well considered, that the object against whom you sin, is the infinite blessed God, which derives an infinite evil to the sin committed against him; and when you consider how God dealt with the angels that fell, for one sin, and that but of the mind ; (for having no bodily organs, they could commit nothing externally against God :) you will alter your minds about it. O the depth of the evil of sin ! If ever you will see how great and horrid an evil sin is, measure it in your thoughts, either by the infinite holiness and excellency of God, who is wronged by it ; or by the infinite sufferings of Christ, who died to satisfy for it ; and then you will have deeper apprehensions of the evil of sin.
Inf. 2. If the death of Christ satisfied God, and thereby re- deemed the elect from the curse : then the redemption of souls is costly ; souls are dear things, and of great value with God. " Ye " know, (says the apostle,) that ye were not redeemed with cor- " ruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation, «' received by tradition ; but with the precious blood of the Son of " God, as of a lamb without spot," 1 Pet. i. 18, 19. Only the blood of God is found an equivalent price for the redemption of souls. Gold and silver may redeem from Turkish, but not from hellish bondage. The whole creation sold to the utmost worth of it, is not a value for the redemption of one soul. Souls are very dear ; he that paid for them found them so : yet how cheaply do sinners sell their souls, as if they were but low priced commodities ! but you that sell your souls cheap, will buy repentance dear.
Inf. 3. If Christ's death satisfied God for our sins, how unparal: leled is the love of Christ to poor sinners ! It is much to pay a pe- cuniary debt to free another, but who will pay his own blood for another ? We have a noted instance of j- Zaleucus, that famous Locrensian lawgiver, who decreed, that whoever was convicted of adultery, should have both his eyes put out. It so fell out that his own Son was brought before him for that crime : hereupon the
* By this death of Christ we are greatly excited both to caution, and to detes- tation of sin. For it must surely be a deadly evil which could not be otherwise cured than by Christ's death. What man therefore, seriously considering that his sins were no other way expiated than by the blood of the very Son of God, will not tremble at the thoughts of trampling, as it were, on that most precious blood by daily sinning ? Davtn. on Col. chap. i. ver. 20.
f Valerius, book vi. chap. 5.
186 THE FOUNTAIN OF LIFE. SEfeM. XIV.
people interposing, made suit for his pardon. At length the fa- ther, partly overcome by their importunities, and not unwilling to shew what lawful favour he might to his son, he first put out one of his own eyes, and then one of his son's ; and so shewed himself both a merciful father, and a just lawgiver ; so tempering mercy -with justice, that both the law was satisfied, and his son spared. This is written by the historian as an instance of singular love in his father, to pay one half of the penalty for his son. But Christ did not divide, and share in the penalty with us, but bare it all. Zaleucus did it for his son, who was dear to. him ; Christ did it for enemies, that were fighting and rebelling against him : Rom. v. 8. " While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." " O " would to God (said a holy one) I could cause paper and ink to " speak the worth and excellency, the high and loud praises of our <f Brother ransomer ! O the ransomer needs not my report ; but " O if he would take it, and make use of it ! I should be happy u if I had an errand to this world but for some few years, to spread " proclamations, and out-cries, and love-letters of the highness *' [the highness evermore] of the ransomer, whose clothes were *c wet, and dyed in blood ; howbeit, that after that, my soul and " body should go back to their mother nothing."